Biden Working To Lower The Cost Of 10 Drugs For People With Medicare

President Joe Biden is hoping to make it less costly for millions of seniors who take blood thinners, diabetes medication, and other potentially life-saving drugs.

"[M]illions of Americans are forced to choose between paying for medications they need to live or paying for food, rent, and other basic necessities." the President said in a statement. "Those days are ending."

The administration on Tuesday unveiled a list of ten popular but expensive drugs whose prices Medicare will now be able to negotiate down, under the authority of 2022's Inflation Reduction Act, a measure Biden calls "one of the most significant laws ever enacted."

The law has been widely disparaged by Republicans, but Biden says, in this time of higher inflation, there's nothing more important than lowering the cost of prescription drugs for Americans.

"We pay more for prescription drugs than any other major economy in the world," the President said today at White House news conference.

According to federal data, about 9 million Medicare enrollees spent $3.5 billion in 2022 on the ten drugs selected for the first round of price negotiations. In Oklahoma, the average out-of-pocket cost last year for Medicare enrollees taking Eliquis, Jardiance, and Xarelto was $459, $349, and $494, respectively.

Biden says the Veterans Administration has been allowed to negotiate lower drug prices for veterans, it's only fair that Medicare be able to do the same for seniors.

"This is a long time coming," the President smiled, noting that he and others advocating for this have been opposed every step of the way by the powerful pharmaceutical lobby.

Those same drug makers have filed at least eight lawsuits to block the plan. They claim the process won't be a true negotiation and that the federal government is overstepping its authority.

Oklahoma Senator James Lankford agrees. In arguing against passage of the Inflation Reduction Act last August, Lankford said this particular feature would be bad for healthcare in America, as it would discourage drug makers from innovating and looking for multiple uses of an effective drug.

"Because, if the drug gets too used, then it falls into this new negotiation category," Lankford argued. "So, the incentive for the drug companies is not to try new ways of using this drug."

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the ten drugs were chosen "through a process that considered their clinical benefits, the extent to which it fulfills an unmet medical need, and its impact on people who rely on Medicare," among other things. The drugs are all relatively expensive, have a single source provider, are covered under Medicare Part B or Part D, and have no generic or biosimilar competition.

The selected drug list for the first round of negotiation is:

1. Eliquis
2. Jardiance
3. Xarelto
4. Januvia
5. Farxiga
6. Entresto
7. Enbrel
8. Imbruvica
9. Stelara
10. Fiasp; Fiasp FlexTouch; Fiasp PenFill; NovoLog; NovoLog FlexPen; NovoLog PenFill

If the courts don't stop the process, the next step is for the drugmakers to sign agreements to join the negotiations by October 1. Medicare officials would then make initial price offers next February, the negotiated prices would be published September 1, 2024, and they would go into effect in 2026